A Single Light
by Fox-Like-Shadow
Summary: This is the story of Neopolitan's life under the employment of the gentleman thief Roman Torchwick. After a lifetime of darkness and loneliness she had finally found a single light, a single friend. And she doesn't want to let him go.


**Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY or any of its characters. I give full credit to Monty Oum and all of the CRWBY; you guys are awesome!**

 **This is my first RWBY Fanfiction and so many people have wrote amazing RWBY stories so I figured I would give it a go. Please review and enjoy the story of one of my favorite ships: Gelato. (Neo x Roman)**

"Thank you, thank you! Please, hold your applause." Neo watched with a smirk as Roman began his speech to win over the crowd of White Fang soldiers.

Her gaze narrowed as one of the new White Fang recruits, a Faunus with antlers, interrupted, "What's a human doing here?" She switched her gaze back to Torchwick, already knowing what face he was making before she saw his smug grin.

"I'm glad you asked, dearie." He announced his green eyes gleaming as he took a few steps toward the crowd. "Now I'll be the first to admit, humans are the WORST." Then to accentuate he pointed to himself and added, "Case in point. So I understand why you would love to see us all locked away, or better yet: killed!"

Neo grinned as she watched him stroll towards one of the stolen Atlesian mechs and rap his fist on it, talking all the while. Her odd-colored eyes flicked back to the crowd and she saw them listening intently.

 _Everything is working just as Roman intended it to._ She thought with a satisfied grin as her eyes found their way back to the well-dressed thief, his persuasive voice filling her ears once more as she focused on what he was saying.

"Now, many of your brothers have already moved down to our new operation in the south east. If you'd rather stay within the city, that's fine. But if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in," He paused for a dramatic effect before he continued in a tempting tone. "This is the arsenal I can provide you. Any questions?"

The mob of White Fang cheered, their rallying cries echoing loudly in the large storage room. She rolled her eyes as Roman gave a bow and sauntered over to her, a victorious look on his face.

"I think that went well. How about you?" He murmured quietly as leaned casually back on one of the Atlesian Mechs and smirked at her. She nodded, giving him a bright smile as he lit one of his cigars. "Glad you think so. Y'know I'm actually kind of surprised they accepted so quickly but it was probably my charm that convinced them. No one could say no to such a good-looking man as myself."

Neo snorted at that and was about to sign a response when Roman turned to the crowd, his lips twisting into a scowl. She followed his gaze and found him staring at two of the new White Fang recruits. A monkey Faunus and a cat Faunas were hanging back from the crowd, looking around nervously.

Torchwick cast his cigar away and began walking towards them when the cat Faunus whispered something to her friend before lifting her weapon and firing a shot.

Instantly everything was plunged into darkness. She heard several shouts of confusion and uproar but above that she heard the cat Faunus as she cried, "Sun! The window!" Neo smirked and went to chase them when she felt a hand squeeze her shoulder and a smoky voice that sent shivers down her spine whisper in her ear.

"Follow me but don't interrupt unless things take a turn for the worse. I want to have a little fun with these kids." Neo nodded as Roman removed his hand and she stepped daintily to the side as she heard one of the mechs rumble to life. Whipping out her umbrella she shielded herself as the mech crashed through the wall in pursuit of the two Faunus.

Just as Neo was about to follow him, one of the White Fang that were in charge rushed to the hole in the wall. "I need the experienced soldiers to follow Mr. Torchwick and help him eliminate the traitors." He ordered and several of the White Fang grunted a response as they moved to collect their weapons that had been scattered in the confusion.

Neo gave an inward sigh as she approached the White Fang soldier and tapped his shoulder.

"The soldiers are almost ready to move out and help Mr. Torchwick. If you'll just wait another moment." He explained but Neo shook her head. "What?"

With a flurry of her hands she signed her response, "Don't bother; Torchwick can handle them. The only back up he needs is me." And with that she started running, leaving the White Fang soldier looking utterly confused.

 _Besides-_ She thought slyly as her brown and pink hair fluttered behind her. _Your useless goons would just get in the way._

A few agile jumps and flips brought her to the city's roof tops, letting her survey the path of destruction the Atlesian mech had left in its wake. She smirked as she saw the hulking piece of tech swerve and leap onto the highway, keeping the two Faunus running.

She landed on the last roof top before the highway and scanned the traffic before she leaped, her eyes locked on her target. With a metallic thump she landed on the top of a speeding van; letting out a silent sigh of relief that the person driving hadn't noticed.

Wind buffeted her as she lowered herself to one knee and braced herself. A flash of yellow caught her eye and she glanced over to see a girl with golden hair and lilac eyes zoom past on a motorcycle with a frightened blue-haired boy clinging on to the back.

She tore her gaze away as vehicles started flying in all directions. One was coming straight at her but she didn't move. Just as it hit her the illusion shattered and she stole a glance back from the new car she rode on as the shards scattered across the road behind her.

 _They must be with the Faunus duo._ Neo thought to herself as she turned her attention back to the girl and boy on the motorcycle and watched them speed up to the mech. The blue-haired boy whipped out the weapon that he carried on his back and fired a few shots before he transformed his weapon into a staff and sprung off the bike. With a dramatic flip and a mighty thrust he sunk the weapon into the back of the mech, causing it to falter for a moment before it started shaking wildly to try and throw the boy off.

Neo leaped to another car that was a little closer and brushed her wildly blowing hair out of eyes just in time to see both the monkey boy and the blue-haired boy go flying off the highway.

"Blake! I'm in position!" Neo's head snapped up as a small white girl fell from a highway above and landed, rapier drawn as she faced the oncoming mech.

 _What is she thinking? Surely she knows that she'll be trampled. . ._ Neo thought, her eyes widening as the girl did an elegant twirl and stabbed her rapier into the ground just as Torchwick bore down on her. Ice rushed out from the blade and spread across the ground, causing the mech to slip and tumble across the highway and off the edge.

With a quick pop of her umbrella Neo leaped off the car she had been riding and let the wind gently guide her down to where the black top met the ice. She looked around the suddenly lifeless highway and carefully stepped onto the ice and peered down to the road below.

Torchwick's mech was still on it's feet and was facing four girls, all bearing weapons.

 _Huntresses. Of course they'd try to mess up the plan._ Neo thought sourly as her eyes flicked over the teenagers. Her pink and brown gaze lingered on the one that donned a bright red cape. _She's the one Roman mentioned that tried to stop his dust robbery._

"Freezerburn!" The caped girl ordered as she fired a shot from her scythe, launching her backwards. The Faunus girl seemed to vanish as the icy-eyed girl stepped forward and stabbed her rapier into the ground. Once again the ice spread out like a sheet over the ground but this time the yellow haired girl leaped high up into the air and shot back down.

The cold white Huntress dodged backwards just as the yellow-haired girl's shot gauntlet slammed the ground. The heat instantly evaporated the ice, causing a thick mist to spread around the mech. Searching lasers shot out from the mech as it lumbered around in a circle, trying to catch a glimpse of at least one of the girls.

 _Where are they?_ Neo wondered with a frown as she let her eyes rove over the scene below. A flash of black in the mist caught her eye but it disappeared just as quickly, making her wonder if she imagined it. She knew she didn't though as she saw more colors appear in gaps in the mist, making her wish she could somehow tell Roman. _The mist will fade soon though and then he'll be able to see them._ She reasoned as she watched the mech pick up on a few of the movements and start firing shots.

The Huntresses dodged his blind shots and the leader took advantage of it as she flew forward and slashed the machine with her scythe, bouncing back to the ground from the force of the hit but still staying on her feet.

"Checkmate!" Their leader shouted the new command and the ice girl and the Faunus girl both rushed forward in tandem, weapons drawn. Together they slashed and struck the mech's legs with their weapons, the cold white girl breaking their ruthless attack as she leaped up and stabbed her slender blade into the machine's sensor. Before she fell she summoned a glyph under her and used it to jump away from an undoubtingly frustrated Torchwick.

With a jerk of the machine, he raised one foot of the robot to crush the Faunus girl but missed as the icy huntress summoned another glyph under her teammate so she could quickly pull her out of harm's way. Torchwick was obviously not amused.

Missal turrets opened up on the top of the mech and he fired several at the black and white duo. Just as quick as before the ice girl summoned a glyph underneath them so they could speedily evade the attack with numerous backflips before leaping high into the air.

Neo smirked at their mistake as Roman took advantage of the opening and fired another shot, this time hitting the white girl. As she flew through the air however, she cast another glyph on her teammate. The glyph spread on the ground and looked like a mass of gears and clocks before it enveloped the cat girl in a gold aura.

The Atlesian mech fired another round of missals which rushed eagerly towards the Faunus Huntress. With a yell she swung her blade, a purple slash of energy racing out from it and severing one of the missals. She swung her blade in another arc and another, until all you could see was the flurry of purple energy strikes shielding her. With one last powerful slash she cut the rest of them, the broken missals exploding behind her in the air.

"Ladybug!" The caped girl exclaimed, rushing toward the mech at a surprising speed. She sped under the machine and slashed at the body with her scythe, letting the momentum carry her behind the machine where she fired a shot from her weapon which carried her back in the direction of the mech. The Faunus girl leaped into action and sprinted under the robot as her leader rushed toward her.

Together they slashed the legs of the machine as they passed each other and ended up on opposite sides once more. They continued the back and forth, hack and slash attack until Torchwick fired at the caped girl. Simultaneously they leaped into the air and dove at the mech, their blades slicing one of the arms of the robot completely off.

The mech stumbled back in recoil as the two huntresses scurried away. Neo winced as she watched the gold-haired girl charge at the machine and leap onto it's back. Her fiery fists bashed the robot repeatedly, the shot gauntlets hammering into the metal like it was nothing.

The remaining arm on the mech flailed as it tried to knock the attacker off but when that didn't work it threw itself backward into several of the pillars. They shattered as they crashed through them until it slammed into a thick pillar that finally knocked the yellow huntress off. As the machine turned around its arm transformed, the fingers of the mechanical hand balling into a fist.

The lavender eyed warrior was starting to fall limply to the ground but Roman quickly intercepted with a vicious punch that sent her flying through another pillar. The debris fell around her motionless body and Neo could almost sense Roman smirking as the machine took a step forward.

"Yang!" The Faunus girl cried, her worry clear in her voice.

 _So that's the yellow one's name. I'll have to keep that in mind for next time, if she survives._ Neo thought devilishly as she leaned down a little more to get a better view.

"Don't worry," The red-caped girl said, a knowing grin on her face as she continued. "With each hit she gets stronger, and she uses that energy to fight back."

As their leader spoke Neo watched as Yang slowly rose to her feet, still looking unsteady after the robot's brutal assault. However her long blond hair now looked as if it was glowing and flickering, almost like her hair had become flames of gold.

"That's what makes her special." The Leader finished and Yang balled her hands into fists. Torchwick wound up the mech's arm and threw another full force punch at Yang. This time, however, the yellow huntress stopped the colossal metal fist with her bare hands. She glared up at the machine, a smirk twisting her lips. That's when Neo realized her lilac eyes had turned into a bright blood red color.

With a shout Yang drew her arm back and threw a punch that shattered the mech's arm into hundreds of tiny pieces. The machine reared back from the force but Roman quickly got it back under control and used one of the mech's legs to kick Yang. It sent her hurtling back, flying past her teammates.

"Bumblebee!" Their leader ordered and the cat girl hurled half of her weapon in Yang's direction while she gripped the other part, a thick black ribbon connecting them. Yang twisted around in midair just in time to catch the projectile and landed running. The Faunus Huntress grunted as she tugged the ribbon around, whipping Yang in circles around her.

Yang fired her shot gauntlets behind her to give her even more speed as her partner twirled her around until they finally got close enough and Yang lashed out at the mech with a powerful kick. It stumbled back but still remained steady and intact.

"We have to slow it down!" The red Huntress shouted, her hands gripping her scythe tightly.

The ice girl landed beside her, annoyance in her voice as she spoke, "And how do you propose we do that?"

"Ice Flower!" The caped girl responded as she kept her gaze locked on the armless machine. Together the red and white duo spun their weapons, the cold girl's rapier flickering with what looked like blue flames as they got into position. The leader stabbed her scythe into the ground as her partner summoned glyphs in front of it. With a single shot a crackling ball of blue blasted out from it and flew straight at the mech.

As soon as it connected large jagged ice chunks blossomed on the robot, causing it to take another recoiling step back. They continued firing the ice magic at the mech, nearly covering it in white ice and finally slowing it to a stop.

Another yell from Yang drew Neo's attention back to the black and yellow duo and she saw they were still continuing their deadly whip move. Yang fired a few more rapid shots from her gauntlets until her fiery aura left a trail of golden flames in her path. With one last mighty cry, Yang was whipped at the machine and she struck it with an earth-shaking punch.

The battered up Atlesian Mech went flying and crashed to the ground, at last falling apart and exposing the man inside. He smoothly rolled to his feet and surveyed the mutilated machine before his gaze turned to himself.

"Just got this thing cleaned!" He growled as he dusted himself off. His green eyes lifted and met the wild red eyes of Yang.

 _Looks like this is my cue._ Neo thought as Yang readied her gauntlets. Neo leaped off the highway and popped her umbrella open, gripping the handle tightly. Just as she landed she jutted her umbrella out in front of both her and Torchwick.

Yang's shot exploded as it hit her umbrella but the flames fanned around the impenetrable barrier, leaving both her and Roman unscathed. With a swirl of her umbrella Neo lifted it and settled it behind her as she smirked at the huntresses.

Torchwick took a few more steps back behind her as he spoke, "Ladies. Ice Queen."

"Hey!" The icy one exclaimed indignantly.

Roman carried on as if he didn't hear her, "Always a pleasure. Neo, if you would." Neo's smirk grew bigger as she performed an elegant bow to the brats in front of her. She stayed frozen in that position as she worked her Semblance. The team of huntresses shuffled slightly, as if they were unsure of what to do when Yang blasted past them.

With a yell she struck at them with another one of her rocket-like punches. The illusion shattered upon impact, leaving the team looking around in shock and bewilderment as the shards clattered noisily to the ground.

Neo gazed down at the young Huntresses as the Bullhead swiftly carried them away. Her eyes met Yang's once more before the aircraft took them out of sight. With clouds obscuring the view below she turned her heterochromatic gaze to Roman.

Now that the fight was over he had let his snarky mask and confident smirk fade away. His face was now twisted into a frustrated scowl as he muttered something inaudibly to himself, all the while angrily chewing on a brand new cigar he had lit. She tried to meet his bright green eye but he was glaring out at the dark misty terrain below and she wondered if he was pointedly avoiding her.

Quietly Neo lowered herself to the cold floor of the bullhead and swung her legs over the edge as she sat down, her umbrella sitting beside her. With a sweet smile she turned to Roman once more and tapped the spot beside her. She frowned as he continued to ignore her and began tapping more furiously, making sure this time that he could hear her.

Roman's head snapped up and he finally met her gaze with a surprised expression. With a weary shake of his head he sauntered over to her and sat down in the spot she had indicated. She smiled at him before turning back to survey the view, her eyes now sweeping over the starry sky and landing on the shattered moon above.

 _I know he's upset about what happened tonight but I don't want to pressure him into talking. He's the boss and he'll tell me if he wants to._ Neo thought as a comfortable silence settled over them for a few minutes. Before long Roman let out a groan which gave her the signal that he was about to start his rant.

"Why does someone always come along and ruin a perfectly good scheme? I had the White Fang eating out of my palm but then kitty cat and monkey boy had to go ahead and ruin everything! But all that wouldn't have been so bad if little Red and her little team of wanna be Huntresses hadn't shown up and destroyed my mech. I mean, don't they realize how much trouble I had to go through to steal that? Of course not! They didn't care at all! And to top it all off I now need to send this to the cleaners again." Torchwick finished as he aggravatingly gestured to himself before he slumped back onto the floor with a huff.

Neo laid back as well, her brown and pink gaze taking in his orange locks that poked out from under his bowler hat and cascaded over one side of his face. It seemed almost golden in the moonlight next to his pale skin.

 _Even when he's not working his charm I can't help but admire his good looks._ Neo thought before she quickly shook herself of the silly thought. _What am I thinking? I want to cheer him up; that's all I want to do! He's irritable when he's like this and tends to take it out on the furniture at the apartment which just makes things more difficult for me. I just want to make his life easier. Yeah, that's it._

Ready to put her plan in action, she sat up and tilted her head down at him so she could meet his visible green eye. He raised an eyebrow at her in question and she quickly signed her question.

"Ice cream?"

He let out a pathetic groan and covered his eyes with one of his arms as he responded, "I really don't feel like it tonight Neo. After the fight I don't feel as if I earned an ice cream. Besides I still have to work on the next scheme. There are still parts I need to work out before I can send it to the White Fang and get the useless mutts to help out."

Neo sighed and fixed a glare on her boss. He was constantly talking about the next scheme, who he needed to contact, what he needed to steal to make it work, and all the planning. Although she wouldn't admit it aloud she couldn't help but admire his dedication to every detail in his plans: such as the timing of each phase and predicting all the things that could go wrong so he would be prepared and, if necessary, have an escape route.

 _He needs this treat and I'm going to make sure that we go and get it no matter what._ Neo thought with a resolute nod before she began poking his other arm that laid limply between them.

"Stop it Neo, I already said I don't feel like it." He growled, batting her finger away. She ignored his words and resumed her poking, this time a little harder. He gave a few more muffled protests and tried to swat her away but she continued, a sly smile growing on her lips. "What is it Neo? What do you want?" He exclaimed as he uncovered his eyes and glared at her.

Neo had already wiped the grin off her face and was now facing Roman with the most pitiful, puppy-dog face she could muster.

"No, don't give me that face! I said we're not going and getting ice cream." Roman stated as he sat up once more and crossed his arms. Neo batted her eyes and let her lip tremble slightly for extra effect as she leaned in closer to Torchwick, gazing upwards at him with strawberry and chocolate eyes.

She knew it was working as she saw his lip twitch and his hand clench into a fist. Finally he let out a loud sigh of resignation.

"Fine Neo, you win. Now stop giving me that face." He retorted as he stood up and waltzed over to the pilot and murmured something to him. The pilot nodded and the ship turned in the air and began a downward descent.

Neo grinned to herself, quite pleased. As she heard Torchwick return she stood up and gazed down at the city lights of Vale.

"Ready to go get the ice cream you, oh so terribly needed?" Roman asked as he cast away his cigar.

Neo nodded emphatically as she got ready to jump, glancing over and seeing a smirk on her boss' face. _You may have seen tonight as a loss Roman, but for me this is a win._ She thought cheekily as they leaped.

 **So I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of A Single Light. It's going to be a fun story for me to write and I hope you'll stick with me to the end. Speaking of the end, this story will have two endings, a Canon ending and an AU ending. I couldn't decide which one when I was planning this story so I decided that I would just do both of them. ^~^**

 **Thanks for reading! Fox-Like-Shadow**


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